Tell Me That You'll Wait For Me
by Gloredhel
Summary: Danny's POV continued! Now he and Rafe are leaving for the force...this is really sad so keep tissues on hand! enjoy and R&R!


DISCLAIMER: blahblahblah...they're not mine. dammit, i wish josh was! i dream about him lol. ohh i found out he might not be with that chick from Planet of the Apes--YAY! whoa...way off topic...anyways, the title is from Peter, Paul, and Mary's song "Leaving on a Jet Plane"...  
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE: yay!! people still like my stories!! i'm thinking of just doing an email thing eventually...when the general PH fanfic page here has died down...so gimme your emails if you want me to send em to you all! plus, some people have been requesting that i send them the whole stories, put together...so if you want them (a.k.a. this "installment" setup is a hassle) tell me! send me email addresses to: LuxieB73@aol.com. this story is about Danny and Rafe leaving Tennessee to join the airforce. Enjoy and review! i'm leaving in two days for maine!  
  
  
  
Tell Me That You'll Wait For Me  
  
  
  
...I remember the last time I saw Tennessee as clearly as if it were yesterday. As I child, I wished only to get out of that place and never look back - as I lay here now, I only wish I could see it again, one last time...  
  
  
Sunlight shone through Susie's lace curtains onto my face, the warm beams rousin' me from a deep sleep, full of dreams of airplanes and endless blue skies. Looking next to me, I saw Suze's pristine face and I smiled contentedly. She stirred a little, but stayed asleep as I kissed her smooth forehead gently and got out of bed.  
I walked to the window, and slowly pulled the curtains open. The sun had just begun to settle above the trees, and the fields gave off a mist that swirled its way around the tractors and fences. I watched as a finch landed on the windowsill and looked at me awkwardly. I placed my palm on the glass, hoping it would come closer, but instead it just flew away. Sighing, I went outside onto the porch and stood there, leaning on the railing and watching the morning begin.  
I couldn't believe that this was going to be the last time in a long while that I'd see this view. Going to the airforce meant leaving so many things that I loved behind. Sure, I'd always longed to break out of here. But now? Now I wasn't so sure. I'd never left the safety of Tenny before, and leavin' it now was wrenching at my guts. It'll be fine, I reassured myself.  
I heard a noise behind me and saw Rafe coming through the screen door.  
"Couldn't sleep late, huh?" he asked quietly, leaning himself next to me on the railing, facing the house instead of the open land.  
"Yea...I'm goin' to miss this," I replied, gripping onto the railing as I leaned forward cautiously, examining the ground.  
"Never thought we'd actually leave. I hate to leave everything behind."  
"It's not like we're never coming back, though. We can always come back , and everything'll still be here waiting for us."  
"You really believe that? That things won't change while we're gone?"  
I shook my head.  
"'Course things are gonna change," I responded, smiling. "But not the things that really matter. Like this house. We can come back to this house and it'll feel the same. We can put our old crate plane back together in the barn, that'll still be here, and act like idiots and it'll feel the same. Fact of the matter is, who cares what changes and what doesn't? We can make it the way it used to be and it won't matter anymore that things aren't the way they were."  
"That's pretty philosophical there, Walker," Rafe joked, punchin' me lightly in the shoulder. "You gettin all poetic on me here?"  
"Nahh...," I paused. "What do you think it'll be like?"  
"What what'll be like?"  
"Flying. Not for fun anymore, but for real, for this country."  
"I think it'll be the same. Just we'll have fancy outfits to do it in now. And hats...the chicks love the hats."  
"Always the ladies man, Rafe, always the ladies man."  
"Do you think we'll get to fight? The Germans, I mean..."  
"Maybe. If we're good enough. That'd be a big risk though, would you do it?"  
"I don't know, I honestly don't know. I could die. And if I died, I'd be leaving behind a lot of things that are important to me...you and Suze, this farm...everything. But for my country? You hafta give your all for the country that gave you independence."  
"Now who's the poetic one?" I laughed.  
"Gawd Danny, things went by real fast didn't they?"  
"What do you mean?"  
"We grew up. I don't mean to be corny, but we really grew up. And the whole time, I didn't realize it. I kept gettin' bigger, but I never realized it. And now here we are, about to leave everythin' we've every known behind and I'm not sure if I'm ready."  
"I haven't exactly been preparin' for this either...but we'll be fine. We got eachother, right? Remember, you're my best friend. I've been tellin' you that forever and you know you got me there right by your side the whole damned time."  
"Land of the free," Rafe laughed, pattin' my back.  
"Home of the brave," I answered, roughin' his hair up.  
  
  
...The hardest part of leaving someone you care about is mkaing promises that you don't know if you can keep. Like staying alive. How can you say for certain when it's out of your control? Rafe once told Susie that God had a plan for us all that we could never alter, and she knew that. But even as I said goodbye, I couldn't deny her the comfort of telling her I'd come back. I couldn't scare her anymore than she already was...  
  
  
Entering Susie's room, I saw that she was at the window, gazing outside at the sparce clouds in the blue sky.  
"Hey," I said, walking to her side and kissing her. My arms circled her waist and we stood there, bathing in sunlight.  
"Hey back," she replied, smiling.  
"It's...well..it's almost time."  
"I know. You're all packed right? You didn't forget anything?"  
"No mother, I didn't forget a thing," I joked, rubbing my cheek in her hair, which smelled of flowers.  
"Danny, what am I gonna do when you two are gone?"  
"You'll be fine...I'm sure you'll be fine. We'll be in touch the entire time, and I'll even arrange it for you to come and visit."  
"I'll be all alone here," she whispered, as I saw a lone tear stream down her cheek.  
"No you won't," I soothed, stroking her silky hair. "You've got your friends. And me and Rafe - you've still got us."  
"I'll still be alone, in this house. No Momma, no Daddy..and now no Rafe."  
"It scares you, huh?"  
"Yea. He's the only family I got now. And he means the whole damned world to me. You too, but Rafe's all the blood I've get left and I don't wanna lose him."  
"He doesn't want to leave you either," I offered, "It scares him too. You're all he's thinking about when he debates the safety of this whole damn issue. He loves you, Suze, and he always will. You don't hafta be worried."  
"I'll miss you Danny," she said gently and quietly into my ear. Turning her around and holding her to me, I kissed her lightly on the lips. Hungrily, she kissed me back and we stood there, embracing for a full twenty minutes before the taxi's horn blared outside.  
"You have to go now," Susie whispered, not lookin me in the eyes. I cupped her chin and fixed my gaze on her, finally gettin her to return it.  
"You'll never lose me," I whispered back, hugging her tiny body tightly as she held onto me as though her life depended on it. "It's not goodbye."  
"Of course not," she smiled weakly, tears fillin her pretty hazel eyes.  
"Hey, smile for me," I cooed, holdin back tears, "Then tell me that you'll wait for me?"  
"Oh Danny," she cried, holdin to me again like she'd never let me go, "You know I'll always be here waitin'. You're the only one for me- ever."  
  
  
Together we slowly picked up my bags from her floor and walked outside. Rafe's luggage was already in the cab's trunk and he was leanin' on the hood, waiting to say goodbye to his sister. She ran to him and stopped short in front of him.  
"Now Rafe," she said, crying quietly and smiling through her tears, "Don't go crashin' any planes or anythin silly like that."  
"Aww Suze, you're still my little baby," he responded, his eyes, identical to hers, welling up though he refused to cry in front of her.  
They embraced silently, him holding her as she sobbed. Finally she pulled away and straightened his tie.  
"Now don't you look handsome?" she smiled weakly. "Both of you better get goin', or you're gonna be late."  
"Bye girly," Rafe said, kissin her on the cheek. "I'll be home soon. Expect a letter in a few days."  
She nodded silently, her tears running more freely. It was my turn.  
I stood in front of her and leaned my forehead against hers, our noses touching and our eyes closed. My hand on her neck, I kissed her gently on the lips one last time.  
"Forever, Suze," I whispered. "Remember what you told me."  
"I'll be right here when you come home," she responded quietly, her shoulders gently shakin.  
Forcing myself to pull away, I got into the cab beside Rafe and shut the door. As the taxi pulled away, we both looked behind at the waving girl who was slowly fading from our view.  
I turned and looked at Rafe. A tear was rolling down his cheek and onto his mouth. Placin my hand on his shoulder to comfort him, I realized exactly how scared he was.  
"Remember," I offered soothingly, "When we come back, everything'll still be here waiting for us."  
"I know," he answered, wiping the tear away. "I believe you."  
  
  
  
Fin.  
  
A/N: so far so good?? 


End file.
